New Heat Pump..questions?

I have never owned a Heat Pump before, so I am new to all of this. It appears the Heat Pump is always running?? I have set the temp in the attic to 68 and the Heat Pump seems to run constantly.

It has been cold here in MA (low 30's to 40's) but I was not sure if the Heat pump is trying to maintain the heat at 67? The attic is insulated well (spray foam) and the aux heat does not kick on unless there is a 3 degree temp differential...from my understanding. I have tested this and the aux does come on if I set the temp 3 degrees higher…

Is this what I can expect from the Heat Pump? to be constantly on? I would image that this would do some damage to the electric bill??

Sorry for asking these newbie questions, I just want to get a feel for what everyone thinks..

Advertisement

New Heat Pump..questions?

It is possible that your heat pump is undersized for the fixture that it is supposed to cool and also when there is a great temperature differential between the fixture and outside temp you will see a faster rate of transfer or heat loss to the outside because heat flows from hot to cold so it wants to get outside. I would suggest insulating the rooms more or possibly looking at a higher btu output heatpump.

New Heat Pump..questions?

Heat pump sizing depends on a lot of factors...ie...new or old windows..insulation..SIZE OF AREA to be heated/cooled. Assuming it was sized correctly...poke a hole in the supply plenum and take a temp. reading and then poke a hole near the furnace in the return air plenum...the temp. should be about 22 degrees difference Fahrenheit(higher on the supply side). If it's only 10 degrees or 12 degrees...the unit is probably undercharged or has a leak. The auxiliary heating strip/strips usually only raise the temperature another 40 degrees or so.

They sell digital thermometers which you can buy at Lowe's or Home Depot which will fit into small holes poked.

New Heat Pump..questions?

Temp rise will depend on both the outdoor temp and indoor temp at the time of measurement.
At his posted, some units will only have a rise of 16, and will be working as they should. others may have a rise as high as 24°F at his posted temps.

CFM needs to be verified in order for a temp rise check to mean anything.

Temp rise with the aux heater on should never be taken in the supply plenum, as it will give you a false temp rise.